Development of a Miller Cycle Powersports Engine

Operation of snowmobiles in national parks is restricted to vehicles meeting the Best Available Technology standard for exhaust and noise emissions as established by the National Parks Service. An engine exceeding these standards while operating on a blend of gasoline and bio-isobutanol has been developed based on a production four-stroke snowmobile engine. Miller cycle operation was achieved via late intake valve closing and turbocharging. The production Rotax ACE 600cc 2 cylinder engine was modeled using Ricardo WAVE. After this model was validated with physical testing, different valve lift profiles were evaluated for brake specific fuel consumption and brake power. The results from this analysis were used to determine a camshaft profile for Miller cycle operation. This was done to reduce part load pumping losses and increase engine efficiency while maintaining production power density. A catalytic converter was added to reduce exhaust gas emissions, as measured by the EPA 40 CFR Part 1051 5-mode emissions test cycle. Laboratory testing was conducted on the engine using a water brake dynamometer and in-cylinder pressure transducers. The result is an engine that exceeds BAT standards for pollutant and noise emissions and delivers improved fuel efficiency, while maintaining production performance and driveability.